Very Rare NGC-certified Japanese Gold Coin Featured in Upcoming Sale

A rare gold coin from the birth of the Japanese yen is among over 1,700 world coins graded by Numismatic Guaranty Company™ (NGC®) that are being offered in a Heritage Auctions sale. Bidding is underway for the World & Ancient Coins Platinum Session and Signature® Auction, which will be held on August 25-28, 2022.

The auction’s top coin is a Japan (1870) Meiji Year 3 Gold Pattern 10 Yen graded NGC MS 66 (lot 34307). The Japanese yen was born in the early 1870s amid a rapid modernization of that country’s economy. Gold patterns like this one are very rare, and this particular example is notable for its high grade. It has an estimate of $500,000 and $700,000.

Japan (1870) Meiji Year 3 Gold Pattern 10 Yen graded NGC MS 66 Click images to enlarge.

Another noteworthy coin in the sale is a Great Britain 1893 Una and the Lion Gold 5 Sovereign graded NGC PF 63 Ultra Cameo (lot 34252). Inspired by Edmund Spenser’s “The Faerie Queen,” the coin’s reverse depicts Una (representing the young Queen Victoria) guiding a lion (representing Great Britain). It is generally regarded as the pinnacle of British numismatics, and this example has an estimate of $200,000 to $300,000.

Great Britain 1893 Una and the Lion Gold 5 Sovereign graded NGC PR 63 Ultra Cameo Click images to enlarge.

The auction also features a great rarity struck in the name of another famous English queen: an England (1595-98) Pound graded NGC MS 66★ (lot 34199). This coin was struck in the later years of Elizabeth I’s reign and ranks as one of the best surviving coins from its mintage. It has an estimate of $80,000 to $120,000.

Great Britain 1595-98 Elizabeth I England £1 graded NGC MS 66★ Click images to enlarge.

Other coins featured in the auction include:

• An England 1701 Plain Sceptres 5 Guineas graded NGC MS 63 (lot 34215), with an estimate of $80,000 to $100,000
• a Bohemia 1636 Prague 10 Ducats graded NGC MS 63 (lot 34129), with an estimate of $80,000 to $100,000
• a Germany 1835-dated Prussia Military Review at Kalisz Gold Medal graded NGC AU 58 (lot 34180), with an estimate of $60,000 to $80,000
• a Hungary 1655NB Transylvania 10 Ducats graded NGC AU Details (lot 34348), with an estimate of $50,000 to $70,000
• an Italy (1763-78) Venice 10 Zecchini graded NGC MS 61 (lot 34298), with an estimate of $50,000 to $60,000
• a Belgium (1384-1404) Flanders Noble graded NGC MS 64★ (lot 34126), with an estimate of $50,000 to $60,000
• an Austria 1659 Vienna 5 Ducat graded NGC MS 63+ (lot 34119), with an estimate of $50,000 to $70,000
• a Switzerland 1798 Bern 8 Ducat graded NGC MS 62 PL and pedigreed to the Paramount Collection (lot 34344), with an estimate of $50,000 to $60,000
• a Great Britain 1847 Gothic Crown with Undecimo Edge graded NGC PF 65 (lot 34237), with an estimate of $40,000 to $60,000
• a Great Britain 1711 5 Guineas graded NGC AU 58 and pedigreed to the Thomas H. Law Collection (lot 34220), with an estimate of $40,000 to $60,000
• an Italy 1901R 5 Lire graded NGC MS 63 (lot 34299), with an estimate of $40,000 to $60,000
• a Brazil 1645 Pernambuco Dutch Colony 12 Florins graded NGC MS 62 (lot 34133), with an estimate of $30,000 to $50,000
• a Brazil 1731R 12,800 Reis graded NGC AU 58 and pedigreed to the Petropolis Collection (lot 33146), with an estimate of $30,000 to $50,000

Related Link:

• NGC-graded 2-Kilogram Gold Coins Among Modern Rarities in Heritage Auction